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The bulk of Sam Nelson's career was spent at Columbia Pictures as an assistant director. In this capacity, Nelson worked side by side with Frank Capra (Dirigible, 1931), Orson Welles (Lady from Shanghai, 1947), Robert Rossen (the Oscar-winning All the King's Men, 1949), John Ford (The Last Hurrah 1958) and Budd Boetticher (Comanche Station 1960). And when Billy Wilder rented space at Columbia in 1958 to film Some Like It Hot, Nelson was on hand once more. In addition, Sam Nelson dabbled in acting (Rio Rita, 1929), screenwriting (The Last Man, 1932) and producing (The Menace 1932); he also directed several Columbia "B" westerns from 1938 to 1941.